Parameters of tolerance induction by antigen targeted to B lymphocytes

We have shown that a foreign protein Ag (the F(ab) fragment of rabbit IgG) becomes a particularly effective tolerogen when it is targeted to B lymphocytes in vivo. This is done by injecting the Ag intravenously into mice in the form of the F(ab) fragment of rabbit anti-mouse IgD antibody (F(ab) rabbit anti-δ). Our hypothesis is that resting B cells are tolerogenic APC for CD4⁺ T cells in unprimed animals, and induce Ag-specific nonresponsiveness in the Th cell compartment by presenting Ag without appropriate costimulatory signals. In this report, we find that Ag-activated T cells appear to be resistant to tolerance induction, because F(ab) rabbit anti-δ given 5 days after challenge with rabbit F(ab) in alum adjuvant has little or no effect of the subsequent antibody response. Tolerance also fails in this model when B cells are activated independently of Ag by simultaneous injection of activating concentrations of divalent, IgG mouse anti-δ at the same time as F(ab) rabbit anti-δ. Finally, nonresponsiveness in the T cell compartment is not limited to a lesion in T cell help for the antibody response, because T cells from mice treated with F(ab) rabbit anti-δ and then primed with rabbit F(ab) fragments in CFA show reduced T cell proliferation and IL-2 production when restimulated with Ag in vitro.